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Sunday, March 20, 2011

Field Trip to the Magical Kingdom

Yesterday Alana and I went to Disneyland! Technically we were there as chaperones for my club's field-trip, but it felt very unchaperonish. Of course there was the initial loading of the bus and checking-in all of the students, but once we arrived to the park, we set the kids free and enjoyed a day to ourselves. It was such a fun day! First, we went on Indiana Jones, which I hadn't ridden in years. Next, we went on Pirates of the Caribbean, followed by the Haunted Mansion. I think. I might be getting the order of some of these wrong. We also visited Tom Sawyer's Island and explored some of the bridges and caves, but I can't remember if that was before or after lunch.

At 11:something, we decided to sit down for lunch. We went to this Mexican restaurant that had a quaint outdoor patio-area, and I ordered Mahi Mahi tacos. It was delicious. We sat down and talked for...a really long time. Hours, I think. It was probably one of the deepest discussion I've had with a friend in years. The table next to us appreciated it too, I'm sure, since I talk way too loud. At 1:00, students began calling my cellphone to check in. They were required to check in between 1:00 and 2:00, and every single student was checked in by 1:12. I love this group of kids...they are amazingly responsible for twelve- and thirteen-year-olds.

After lunch, Alana and I went on Space Mountain, the Matterhorn, Small World, and Thunder Mountain. Again, I can't remember the order, but I do remember that Thunder Mountain was my favorite. We rode that one at night, and the dark added to the exhilaration of the ride. Plus the colors inside the mountain are so pretty...they remind me of the Aurora Borealis (even though I've never actually seen them before).

At dinnertime, we ordered BBQ pork sandwiches from a large deli, which we took to-go so we could find a place to squeeze in for the Fantasmic show. Before the show began, the park lit off a bunch of fireworks. The fireworks were beautiful, but I admit I wasn't paying much attention to them. Alana and I were too busy talking about the crazy things that happened to her when she visited Paris ten years ago (you could make a movie out of some of her stories). But once Fantasmic began, it had my full attention. That show is awesome. I'm pretty sure I was holding my breath during the part where the dragon rises up and turns the whole lake on fire. It is so dramatic.

Once the show ended, we headed to the front of the park to meet the kids. All students were supposed to meet by 9:45; I was there by 9:43, and all of them were already there, claiming that I was "late." I forget that with this group, five minutes early is like being ten minutes late. They are very punctual. On the way back to the buses, the students all chattered happily to me about the fun day they had, each of them vying to tell me their funny stories and show me their souvenirs. It was really cute.

The only hitch in an otherwise perfect field-trip was that, once back on campus, our last student was over a half-hour late in getting picked up. A half hour generally isn't a big deal, but by this time it was 12:30 (midnight), and Alana and I were stuck outside in the freezing parking lot, waiting with him. It turned out that the neighbor who was picking him up went to the wrong school. Once I got home, I thought I might just collapse, but instead Clint and I chatted for an hour and I ate some popcorn. I know I must have been exhausted though, because when we finally did go to bed last night, Clint wrapped himself around me like I was his body pillow, and when I woke up this morning, we were still in the same exact position.

Today I feel happy and relieved for having pulled off a successful field trip, but physically I'm in bad shape. My right eye is infected, and I have had uncontrollable fits of coughing for the last 15 days. This cough began the morning after our skiing trip, and hasn't gone away since. Thankfully it's just a cough; the rest of me feels totally fine. But I have never had a cough like this before. One minute I'll be doing my thing; the next minute I have these awful coughs wracking through my whole body. The fits last for a minute or two and leave me gagging and gasping for air. They get particularly bad in the middle of the night. Clint looked up my symptoms online and thinks I have Whooping Cough. He wants me to go to Urgent Care tomorrow, but I am really not a hospitaly person. We'll see.

Completely off-topic, but it is insanely windy. The wind has been beating up our house all day, to the point where I thought we were having an earthquake earlier. But it made for a perfect day to cuddle indoors, watch movies, drink hot chocolate, and do a little painting.

4 comments:

Sounds like fun! I would really love to go to Disneyland. I've not been since the summer of 1998. I was just talking to Matt today about all the things we're going to do once we move home and Disneyland was on the list... though I think he was skeptical about it. lol

Has Matt been there before? I go to Disneyland every year now (on field trips), and I never ever get tired of it. As long as you go on a weekday or off-season, it truly is the most amazing theme park. This particular visit though was the best time I've had at the park in years. :)

Matt's never been. He's only ever even been to CA on the trips we've taken there together. We did take him to Universal Studios, but never Disneyland, Knotts, or Six Flags -- although they have six flags here, too. I'd really like him to see Disneyland, at least one, but it's expensive and he's pretty skeptical about it. He's not sure he'd enjoy it. I think he would, but I could be wrong. I know that I'd enjoy it, though, so we may go and he can shut it! lol

You're right, I had forgotten how expensive it is now (somewhere around $85 per person, I think). But how I love Disneyland! Especially since I go for free (hehe). Six Flags in CA has gotten pretty ghetto. Clint and Mike went to Six Flags in Texas a few years back and said it was much nicer. Knott's is still okay, but they've taken out a lot of the older, timeless stuff out (like the dinosaur ride, one of my childhood favorites) and replaced them with roller coasters. I like roller coasters, but was sort of disappointed the last time I was there (about two months ago) to see some of the more themed-rides gone. You're going to have so much fun introducing Matt to all of these new places once you're back in SoCal. :)